Stepped outside this morning about
7:30….the wind was blowing gently, the sun was shining, the temperature was mid
50s….it was time for a walk. Haven’t
been doing that as much as I had planned at the outset of our trip. My thought back then was ‘Really, how hard is
it take a little walkabout on a daily basis? Not like I’ll be going for
distance, just enough to work the kinks out from sleeping on an air mattress.’ Well, the reality is that the kinks usually
work out on the walk to the bathroom and I’d really rather take pictures of the
birds or catch up on Facebook…both of which don’t require much physical
activity…so the scheduled walking has been put on the back burner. Whatever walking I do has been is in the form
of wandering wherever we happen to stop on the bikes. So this morning, this
morning it was time for a walk. Enough
of the excuses…just get myself out there and take a little walk. So I walked the perimeter of the camp. As I was approaching the big curve around at
the far end, I smelled something so intoxicating coming at me on the wind. Turns out it was a bush with white flowers
that was smelling so good. It was hard
to tell where it was in its blooming cycle because flower petals fell off with
the slightest touch, yet there were oodles and oodles of tightly closed buds
still to open. I’m basically plant
illiterate so I don’t have a clue as to what it is, just know it smelled
delicious. I can see why the bees were
attracted. My mom knows plants and it
she knew how to retrieve a text on her phone, I could send her a picture of the
flower and maybe she could help me out on that. š
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| Gonna build me a nest in that cactus.... |
I sense trouble brewing around here. I was sitting in the wi-fi hot spot and
happened to look over at the saguaro cactus that I like to watch. Ooh! There’s a bird peeking out the
hole…quick grab the camera. I kept my eyes
on the cactus while I turned the camera on, got the lens cap off, etc. That bird came out of the hole, another bird
flew in….and a third landed on the lower cactus with what turned out to be a
feather in its beak. It waited just a
moment…maybe waiting until the first bird was safely out of range….and then
flew into the nest! Was the feather a
bribe of some sort, a love offering? Was
I witnessing the beginnings of a bird love triangle or does that portal lead to
more nesting sites within…kind of a bird commune? These are the important questions of my life
right now…
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| No, I'm building a nest in this cactus! |
I’m involved in a Faithwalking class at
church with 4 other women and a coach.
There’s homework…reading, journaling, online resources, quiet time,
etc. I thought sitting outside in the
wi-fi hotspot would be a good place to catch up on a video I was supposed to
watch last week. There are people
wandering into the clubhouse (#35 included) so I knew it’d be busy and since it
seems slightly unfriendly to sit in the corner and not talk at all, I chose to
sit outside with my headphones on to catch up on homework. That way
I could attend to my business and not be distracted. What I didn’t factor in was how entertaining
the birds would be…or maybe old study habits were just kicking in? Focus, girl, focus…
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Well, it happened…a combination of factors led me to engage #35 in a
conversation. As he walked by my little cubby at the wi-fi hotspot, we both
said hi….then I mentioned how cool his little trailer set up is. So he told me about it…had it for about 1 ½
years, got a really good deal on it, and the modifications that he’s made to
it. That segued into him saying that he
worked in the area back in the 80s at a nearby nuclear facility, which made me
ask in what capacity, to which he replied that he was a welder by trade. I mentioned that we live where we do because
of Jeff’s employment as an operator at the Big Rock Nuclear Plant and also
about his time in the nuclear Navy, etc.
Talked about unions…talked about our intended motorcycle ride which led
to a discussion of how to get to Salt River Canyon, which led to a discussion
about the roads involved in getting to said canyon. And through it all, I still don’t know his
name and really wanted to tell him about his ‘oranges’ but didn’t. š
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The days leading up to March 11 are
always difficult for me…and I daresay for my boys and for Kim
also, who knew
Jeff longer than any of us; I lost a husband, my boys lost a dad and Kim lost a
brother. So it’s been 7 years tomorrow
that Jeff died….and some years the anxiety leading up is low key and some years
it’s right there in my face. Don’t know
why that is, it just is. Up to today, it
seemed low key but then it busted wide open.
So today was for the birds, both literally and figuratively. We didn’t take the long ride we had intended
to take because life got in the way, but I had plenty of time to watch the birds….sparrows
flitting in and out of the cactus carrying nesting material, listening to all
the birds singing/chirping, and based on the movie Bambi, I’d say there’s a bit
of twitterpation in the air. J When the opportunity for a ride arose, we had
about an hour…where do we go? Hey, I know….let’s go down by the hawk’s nest,
sit in the desert and watch for roadrunners.
So that’s what we did…except we bought a bag of chips and a couple
bottles of water first. We saw a
roadrunner but it was literally running across the road in front of us. Absolutely no mistaking what it was. First one that Kim has seen and he was
excited about that. While it would be awesome
to get a picture, just seeing one is a treat, too. The hawk was sitting on the nest again. So I sat on a tire, ate chips, drank some
water and took pictures of it. Yep,
today was for the birds. š
 |
| It's a sitting hawk....š |
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Years ago, Jeff got wind of some
controversy surrounding the book The Shack…I had never hear of the book. While he was interested to know if the buzz
was warranted, he really didn’t read for pleasure because he did so much reading for
work. So I volunteered to read and give
a book report. I thought it was a good
book and while it had an unorthodox portrayal of the Trinity, it contained some
Biblical concepts and I supposed that’s why it sparked controversy. I looked at it as a good story, with some
great imagery. So I recommended it to
Kim not long ago. He was on duty at
the men’s shelter and had time to read. It didn't take him long to read it and he also really liked it….so two thumbs up from us. Before our trip, he said that we had to go
to the movies on or around March 3 wherever we happened to be. Why?
Because The Shack is coming out as a movie and he wanted to see it. So yesterday we went to see The Shack and I
thoroughly enjoyed it. I admit I was skeptical
going in….how could they really bring to life all the imagery of the book? Well, they did an excellent job of casting…and
honestly, it was just the movie I needed to see yesterday. Watched most of it with tears rolling down my
face, but it was just that kind of day for me.
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Despite the heat and sun, the most humidity I’ve
encountered is in the bathroom where the showers are located.
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The last couple of nights haven’t been
good for gazing at the heavens because of the moon. Its brightness overrides the stars. But Kim still tinkers around over by his
scope, practicing with the polar alignment, etc. He’s got so many little gadgets that getting
practice in using them is a good thing.
Then when the sky is right, he can be getting about the business of taking
pictures quicker.
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It’s easy to think you might have lost
a little weight when your pants get a bit baggy after 5 days…until you wash
them.
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Rode about 50 miles today
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